One of the worst times in our lives is when we get into financial difficulties. Nobody wants to ask others for money and most people would agree that they would love to avoid loans when at all possible.
This is where an app like Solo Funds comes into play. One of the most unique types of apps, you can use the power of crowdfunding loans to help you out on a short term basis.
Of course though, there are other apps like Solo Funds that you could download today - so, if you think this could be of use to you, read our helpful list of apps and decide for yourself!
Solo Funds is what is known as a “small dollar” loan app. The app itself does not lend users money, but it allows for other users within the app to contribute towards a loan.
If a user decides to take the risk and lend some money, they can earn up to 12% tips of the amount of money they have lent out.
The loans can be as small as fifty bucks to begin with and can grow to a maximum of five hundred dollars - but users cannot simply turn up and start asking for the maximum amount.
Instead, they must prove themselves - similar to how a credit builder credit card works. They will begin by borrowing a small amount of money and then paying back the loan on time - giving them a Solo score.
Much like a credit score, a Solo score can indicate a user’s responsibility when it comes to lending money, meaning lenders can make their own informed decisions.
Users with little history may pay a higher tip rate (12%), but users who have a long history of borrowing using Solo Funds will pay an average of about 3-4%.
Due to the nature of this app, lenders that are irresponsible will be dealt with via credit agencies and may have action taken against them. Pretty much in the same way that “real” lending services will do.
As we mentioned though, Solo Funds is not alone in this. There are a few apps like Solo Funds you may wish to download today. Here’s just a few of them.
When it comes to borrowing apps, MoneyLion is one of the best out there. If you have a membership through the app, you may not even need to undergo a credit check.
MoneyLion lets you lend small amounts of money for up to one year. If you are responsible, you will find the app much better in terms of interest rates and likelihood of lending to you once again.
However, it’s important to note that much like Solo Funds, you can only borrow a small amount of money at one time, and the loan is only meant to be as a short term solution.
Do not use this app to “fix” financial troubles in a long term solution.
GoFundMe is another such crowdfunding platform, but it’s not necessarily used for a short term loan solution, unlike Solo Funds.
GoFundMe instead allows users to set their monetary goal and explain to other users why they need this figure.
Users may need to raise money for treatments, to pay bills, to recover from a disaster, to thank someone or for any other reason.
Once your target has been reached or even been beaten, you can then withdraw the funds into your personal account and thank those that have donated to you.
The huge difference between GoFundMe and Solo Funds is that there is no obligation to pay back any money received on GoFundMe. If anything, it’s more of a charitable donation.
Kickstarter is also a crowdfunding platform but it differs from GoFundMe and from Solo Funds. With Kickstarter, users can ask for a specific amount of money that they need in a specified time frame.
The money will be requested for a project. This could be to create a film, music album, travel documentary, charitable challenge or anything else.
If their goal is reached or exceeded in the time frame, the users must go ahead with their project.
If however, the target is not reached, the user does not have to go ahead with the project and any donations will be returned.
Upon donations - which work in some ways as investments - other users will be told exactly what they will get for an amount of money they donate.
For example, a band looking to create a solo album may request $500. They may then explain that the following donations will receive the following things:
Of course, this will differ depending on what the project is and how much money is being requested. Once again, there is no obligation for the money to be sent back - however, there is a stipulation.
The users must go ahead with their promises. Scrupulous users may face legal action if they simply “take the money and run”.
Klover is an app that allows users to request a cash advance. It is solely intended for short term financial fixes and never as a long term solution.
So, for users that have a financial emergency or have suffered an unexpected financial difficulty - Klover can be a life saver.
Users tend to adore this app because there’s no costs that are hidden. Klover are very up front about everything.
It’s important to note though that whilst you can receive your requested funds instantly, it’s not always possible.
Sometimes it can take up to two days to receive your money, unless you are a member on the app already.
Lending Club is extremely similar to Solo Funds. However, this is a type of app that only benefits people who can wait for their money. If you’ve got any sort of financial emergency, this wouldn’t be an option.
Like Solo Funds, Lending Club is a person to person lending app and is typically intended for people to help grow their businesses.
Unlike Solo Funds though, Lending Club allows you to borrow much higher amounts of money for a longer period of time.
It’s an important thing to note however that this app will almost certainly request a credit check and may only accept lenders with a credit score of 600 or above.
Kiva is an app that is sort of a hybrid between Solo Funds and Kickstarter. The app allows you to request funds from people in countries all over the world.
The way it works is that you create and share your story. You explain why it is you need the money and what the money might be used for.
Once you’ve done this, other users can then get into contact with you and perhaps ask you a little more about this. If they decide to, they can then loan you the money you have requested.
The payments are usually very flexible and the app is incredibly easy to use. However, unlike Solo Funds - the only way you can qualify for a loan is if you are trying to get a business off the ground (as a start up).
While there is no credit check to begin with, you may be asked to prove some of your claims by other users or by Kiva themselves.
LenMe does away with the traditional form of lending, in that you do not need to deal with banks or other financial institutions.
Bizarrely enough, the interest rate is seemingly lower than most banks anyway!
The process however can get… a little complicated. There’s several things you must do in order to pass security and verification checks.
Having said this though, if you do so - you’ll be right as rain and ready to go ahead. As with Solo Funds, you can borrow fifty dollars if you need to and see how you fare from there.
Zirtue is a peer to peer lending app and one of the most unique points about Zirtue is the fact that you can add your friends, family and wider contacts to your app - which means you can request money from them through the app!
There are no interest payments to make and no hidden costs. Just a straightforward way to lend money from other people without having to deal with the headache of a bank.
As we can see from this list, there are many apps like Solo Funds that you can decide to download today if you want. While they’re not all exactly the same, the overall point remains the same.
We hope this list has been helpful for you!
If you liked this article, you might enjoy our post on ‘10 Apps Like Bigo You’ll Love’.
![8 Apps Like Klover [Awesome Alternatives]](/images/8-apps-like-klover-awesome-alternatives.jpg)
![11 Apps Like Quadpay [Awesome Alternatives]](/images/11-apps-like-quadpay-awesome-alternatives.jpg)